1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of wireless networks, and in particular, to wireless networks that track the location and identity of wireless network devices.
2. Background of the Invention
Enhanced wireless 911 (E911) services help ensure that wireless telephones provide 911 call centers, or Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs), with vital information necessary to locate and identify a caller in an emergency. To comply with E911 standards promulgated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), wireless network providers will soon be required to track the location and identity information of all wireless callers, with the purpose of providing such information to emergency personnel when a caller dials 911 from a wireless telephone. The FCC's wireless E911 rules require certain Commercial Mobile Radio Services (CMRS) carriers to begin transmission of enhanced location and identity information in two phases. Phase I requires carriers to transmit a caller's telephone number and general location to a PSAP. Phase II requires carriers to provide more precise location information to the PSAP.
Under the FCC rules, wireless networks and the corresponding wireless handheld devices, such as cellular telephones, will provide both the identity and location of the caller to a 911 dispatcher. To provide a caller's identity, the wireless handheld device will furnish a device identification, e.g., a mobile identification number (MIN), indicating in most instances the telephone number of the device. The wireless network and wireless handheld devices will provide the location of callers using a network-based location system (e.g., triangulation), global positioning systems (GPSs) within the handheld devices, or a combination of the two systems.
In emergency situations, quickly communicating this location and identity information is an invaluable, life-saving tool. Indeed, although the location and identity information is generally perceived as private information, the public policy behind the E911 regulations favors disclosing such private information in hopes of administering the aid a caller needs in an emergency. However, outside of emergencies, most cellular device users view their location and identity information as intimately private, and express strong reservations against involuntary and automatic disclosures such information.
These reservations are not without merit, as wireless network providers have several ways to exploit the location and identity information of network users. For example, a network provider could furnish a retailer with the identities of network users near the retailer's store, so that the retailer, in turn, could send an advertisement to the devices of the nearby network users, encouraging them to stop in and shop at the store. Knowing the identity of a network user, the retailer could also access profiling information on the user from data sources such as auxiliary marketing databases or historical databases chronicling previous business with the user. The profiling information would allow the retailer to provide targeted advertisements that are more likely to attract the user's business. However, in providing the identity information necessary for these targeted advertisements, the wireless network provider risks offending the network users with a significant invasion of privacy.
The wireless network provider therefore faces a dilemma in satisfying two customers with opposing interests: 1) the network users who desire reasonable privacy, and 2) the content providers (e.g., businesses and advertisers) who aim to appeal to the network users by obtaining as much information about the network users as possible. Thus, to appease both customers, a wireless network provider must provide enough information to content providers to promote effective content delivery and advertising, but at the same time must limit such information to guard the network users' privacy.